Let go of your log

Hello All!  Karma here.
I've been trying to get time all week to update the blog and now that I'm sitting still for a few minutes -- I can't remember anything I was going to say.
We've had our first round of team support meetings this week. I hosted one last Monday and had a blast! I really enjoyed the people who came and can't to get to know each of them better. No one came for Julie's first meeting this morning, though -- so we need to hear from you. Do you want a morning meeting?  Would a different night be better?  Let us know ASAP!

Emotional Eating covers are wide array of issues; from sexual abuse to stress. I've been dealing with emotional eating -- and it's long term impacts--since I was a child. In fact, I'm sometimes not sure how to live without it. Over the years, I've read some pretty amazing books on the subject. My favorite is "Eating in the Light of the Moon" by Anita Johnson. The book is a collection of myths and tales that all deal with emotional eating issues. It's beautifully written. There is a metaphor within one of the stories I've never been able to get out of my mind.  I'll paraphrase it for you:

I’m on the banks of a swollen river when the bank gives way – I’m tossed by the waves and being pulled by a force I cannot control. I’m drowning. A huge log comes by and I grab on – I hold on to save myself
Finally, exhausted, I float into an area where the water is calm. I could easily swim to shore, but I would have to let go of the log. I can’t. I’m afraid.(from the book)“How ironic. The very thing that saved your life is now getting in the way of your getting where you want to go. There are people on the shore who see yhou struggle and yell, “let go of the log!’ But you are unable to do so because you have no confidence in your ability to make it to shore …”

 From the book:

“And so, very slowly and carefully, you let go of the log and practice floating. When you start to sink, you grab back on. Then you let go of the log and practice treading water, and when you get tired, hold on once again. After awhile, you practice swimming around the log once, twice, ten times, twenty times, a hundred times, until you gain the strength and confidence you need to swim to shore. Only then do you completely let go of the log."

Here's the thing.  We could all just stand up and walk to shore. But when you're dealing with so much fear and self loathing, it's hard to let go of that "log". Until we do, we'll float in the winding river forever -- and never reach the shore.
If you're caught up in the torture that emotional eating can be, it's easier to say, "Oh, well! I like it here in the water. I don't need to swim to shore. I'm fine just where I am."
I hate to break it to you (and myself) that you're living a lie. You're not just fine. You're (We) are miserable.  What's so great on that shore?  All sorts of things. Joy. Fulfillment. A good night's sleep. Peace.
I know it seems very overwhelming. Trust me. I know. But the latest book I've discovered (thanks to my friend and fellow team facilitator Julie Merrick) offers a solution.
In The Four-Day Win, author Martha Beck says anything is possible if you break into 4-day blocks. Pick a goal. Then make it ridiculously easy. My goal was to work out every day. I broke it down to I will work out once in four days. Whew! That took the pressure off. At first I felt silly, but I went to the gym that first day...and went back the next two days. Yesterday, I worked out twice!  I feel fabulous. Beck says it only takes four days for your brain to change its thought patterns. A week ago, I was overwhelmed at the thought of going to the gym everyday. Today, when I haven't had a chance to get a work out in, I'm disappointed.  Now I just need to string together 5 sets of 4-day wins to develop a new habit. That doesn't sound too overwhelming at all. I -- and you-- can do anything for 4 days.
I'm hoping Beck's book will help me have the courage to stand up, let go of my log, and walk to shore. Perhaps it will do the same for you.
Eating in the Light of the Moon
Four Day Win

Just for fun!  Another great song from Idina Menzel